Ticked Off [Boku No Hero Academia]

5: QUIRK TEST: NEDZU & AIZAWA

"You did well against All Might - using your words to get into his head and distract him was very cunning!" Nedzu praised the boy, beady black eyes glinting. "If you don't mind – and, of course, Recovery Girl willing – I'd like to go against you next, Midoriya."

"The fight stops the moment you're injured," she warned.

Izuku nodded, following the principal back into the battlegrounds. He knew Nedzu's Quirk relied on probabilities, and he remembered watching the final exams in his first year, where Kaminari and Ashido had been paired up with the ferocious, furry creature and stood no chance against his impressive intelligence with their close-range electric and acid Quirks. It was likely that the principal didn't pack much of a punch, due to being so small with no visible muscle mass, so he was probably going to cause some mischief another way and try to indirectly take down the student.

Izuku paced down the street, ears alert for any signs of collapsing walls or things out of the ordinary. All he had to do was find the ambiguous animal, and he would win – but finding him was most of the struggle. There was a rumble, and his stomach dropped with dread. Slowly, hesitantly, he turned around, staring down the road as the concrete vibrated under his feet.

And, oh, of course Nedzu had somehow discovered a literal bulldozer that most definitely wasn't in the city before.

It was ploughing down the road at a frankly alarming speed, tracks cracking concrete and kicking up dust in its wake. The principal sat in the too-big seat, sipping from a cup of tea as he calmly drove towards the boy, who could only stare in wide-eyed shock as it approached. Metal railings whined and warped as the blade pushed against them, inevitably being broken and crushed, guided along the ground with a horrible screech. Debris from the previous fight had also been collected, leading to a disconcertingly large pile of stones being shoved closer, gaining in height and gradually looking like it was about to topple over at any second.

Izuku finally gave into his instincts, leaping up at the last second and landing behind the vehicle, only to spot a multi-shank ripper attached to the back of the bulldozer. Nedzu was already backing up, and the dangerous tool almost nudged against the boy's ankles as he hopped backwards before shooting to the side, wall-jumping his way to a roof to collect his thoughts as they started to form a vague plan. The building shook as the bulldozer careened into it, collapsing part of the lower wall before reversing, only to come in for a second blow.

Realistically, if he was just thinking about himself, then all he needed to do was bounce around the city until the vehicle ran out of fuel and he could incapacitate the enemy. However, he wanted to keep property destruction to a minimum, and if it was a real scenario then he needed to be wary of civilians in the area, not to mention it would be best to take down the villain as quickly as possible to give people peace of mind.

Another slam rattled the city, and Izuku gripped onto the edge of the roof for support until the tremors passed. It clearly wasn't an average bulldozer if the speed and manoeuvrability were anything to go by, and he was willing to bet that the front blade would raise up to protect the cabin the moment Izuku showed signs of attacking, regardless of the angle he came from. Although his punches were strong, he would likely break a fist if he tried to hit the vehicle, and it was too sturdy to be knocked over.